Well it’s that time of year again! The birds are singing,
the sun comes out for a few minutes every day, and I gather up the YA novels
that have been accumulating around my house over the course of the year and
dedicate the entire month of April to reading nothing but books about
complicated, overly articulate teens and their somewhat less dazzling peers.
Yes indeed, it is #YApril once again. I—an adult woman who is safely beyond
the target age range for such books—have been participating in this reading
project for the past two years and it’s become a central part of my reading
calendar. Now, I tend to look forward to this project with a mix of excitement
and dread.
For those of you who
have followed me over from The Bookish
Blog know that my relationship with Young Adult fiction is well…
complicated. I both love and loathe it with every fiber of my being. As an
English teacher, I love anything that gets my young adult student to read, I
also love that YA is the one genre of fiction that seems to be embracing
diversity and complicated social issues most completely, and when it’s done
right, it’s done SO right. That being said, when it goes wrong, it goes SOOOOO
wrong. YA can be distressingly clichéd and tropey, it can exemplify our
culture’s internalized sexism even when it’s trying to be feminist, and while
it embraces more diversity than most genres, it does LOVE straight, skinny
white girls who fit into that ‘western beauty standards’ box and their often
times petty problems. So I look forward to wading into this pool every year
with VERY cautious optimism.
This Year’s Theme
To make my reading more productive, each YApril of the past
has had some sort of extra structure beyond just being YA, in 2015 I tortured
myself by reading all of John Green’s novels and in 2016 I let the #Bookstagram
community and random selection dictate my TBR. This year I decided to explore
what I think is where YA is doing the most good, this year’s theme is LGBT+. The novels I have selected celebrate queer
stories, with queer characters, and many are by queer authors (hell yeah
#ownvoices!). I’m anxious and excited about this theme, because again YA is so
hit or miss when it comes to the big issues. LGBT+ youth deserve to have their
stories told with as much honesty and sensitivity as anyone else perhaps more
so sometimes. And well… if I can expect anything from YA it’s that something
important is going to be treated with less care, respect, and thoughtfulness
than it deserves. But regardless of my
trepidation, I forge ahead.
This Year’s Line Up
Look Both Ways by Alison Cherry
Goodreads Summary: A
summer away from the city is the beginning of everything for Brooklyn Shepard.
Her acting apprenticeship at the Allerdale Playhouse is a chance to prove that
she can carve out a niche all her own, surrounded by people who don’t know
anything about her or her family of superstar performers. Brooklyn immediately
hits it off with her roommate, Zoe, and soon their friendship turns into
something more. Brooklyn wants to see herself as someone who’s open to
everything and everyone, but as her feelings for Zoe intensify, so do her
doubts. As she questions her sexuality, her role as an artist, and her place in
her family, Brooklyn discovers that neither talent nor love are as
straightforward as she thinks.
Why I Chose It: I
chose this one for two of reasons. Firstly it’s one of the few novels featuring
what appears to be a bisexual protagonist, and secondly it takes place in the
theatre world. So I feel particularly drawn to it as it seems like it covers
fairly familiar ground for me. I would be lying if I said that I found this one
on my own… I’ve seen it on some of my favorite BookTubers’ and Bookstagrammers’
TBRs… so I poached it for myself.
Expectations: My
expectations are actually fairly low for this one. It has an unimpressive 3.0
rating on Goodreads, and beyond that I have yet to read a book with a bisexual
protagonist that didn’t participate in bi-erasure at the end to the tune of ‘I
will never regret the time I spent with [insert same or opposite sex partner
here] but I now know who I am. I am definitively gay/straight’. Bisexuality is
often portrayed as a dalliance that helps protagonists discover/confirm who
they REALLY are and is rarely presented as a valid sexual orientation on its
own. I get the feeling that Zoe is going to be a Manic Pixie Dream Girl… which
even in a same sex relationship is gross and sexist. I’m also anxious about the
way the author represents the theatre world… and I anticipate eyerolling in the
extreme.
#OwnVoices?: Nothing
leads me to believe that Alison Cherry is a member of the LGBT+ Community
Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Beck Albertalli
Goodreads Summary:
Sixteen-year-old and not-so-openly gay Simon Spier prefers to save his drama for
the school musical. But when an email falls into the wrong hands, his secret is
at risk of being thrust into the spotlight. Now Simon is actually being
blackmailed: if he doesn’t play wingman for class clown Martin, his sexual
identity will become everyone’s business. Worse, the privacy of Blue, the pen
name of the boy he’s been emailing, will be compromised. With some messy
dynamics emerging in his once tight-knit group of friends, and his email
correspondence with Blue growing more flirtatious every day, Simon’s junior
year has suddenly gotten all kinds of complicated. Now, change-averse Simon has
to find a way to step out of his comfort zone before he’s pushed out—without
alienating his friends, compromising himself, or fumbling a shot at happiness with
the most confusing, adorable guy he’s never met.
Why I Chose it: Basically
everyone told me to read this one. I’ve not heard one single bad thing about
this book. I don’t know much about it beyond the summary on the back of the
book, and honestly, I’ve never felt compelled to read it before. But when I
asked for recommendations and upward of 40 people told me I HAD to include this
one in this year’s YApril, I had to take it seriously.
Expectations: Well…
they’re pretty high, I mean even as I was buying it at Barnes & Noble, my
cashier told me how amazing it is. The blurbs on the cover claims that it is “A
remarkable gift of a novel” and “the love child of John Green and Rainbow
Rowell” the latter praise gives me pause because John Green is one of my least
favorite YA authors and I hate his brand of earnest adolescent quirk, but I do
love Rainbow Rowell so… I really don’t know how to feel. I’m excited to read
this one, but I’m nervous that I won’t like it and the online book community
will exile me.
#OwnVoices?: I
can safely assume that Becky Albertalli is not a gay man. So while she appears
to be an ally, I do not believe that this is an Own Voices book.
Georgia Peaches and Other Forbidden Fruit by Jaye Robin Brown
Goodreads Summary: Joanna
Gordon has been out and proud for years, but when her popular radio evangelist
father remarries and decides to move all three of them from Atlanta to the more
conservative Rome, Georgia, he asks Jo to do the impossible: to lie low for the
rest of her senior year. And Jo reluctantly agrees. Although it is (mostly)
much easier for Jo to fit in as a straight girl, things get complicated when
she meets Mary Carlson, the oh-so-tempting sister of her new friend at school.
But Jo couldn’t possibly think of breaking her promise to her dad. Even if
she’s starting to fall for the girl. Even if there’s a chance Mary Carlson
might be interested in her, too. Right?
Why I Chose it: I
saw this book for the first time back in September and have been kind of
obsessed with the cover art ever since. I broke down and bought the book back
in December and haven’t had a chance to read yet. So, yeah this one is a 100%
Judge by the Cover book.
Expectations: I
haven’t actually heard much about this book at all. It doesn’t appear much on
BookTube, Bookstagram or Booklr. So I don’t really know what to expect. I am
interested in the way Brown tackles the intersection of a character’s
traditional faith and her queer identity. I do get itchy about the forced back
into the closet premise that seems to be at the center of the book, but I’ll
give it the benefit of the doubt for now.
#OwnVoices?: Based
on my internet sleuthing, I am relatively confident in saying the yes, Brown is
a member of the LGBT+ Community.
The Symptoms of Being Human by Jeff Garvin
Goodreads Summary: Riley
Cavanaugh is many things: Punk rock. Snarky. Rebellious. And gender fluid. Some
days Riley identifies as a boy, and others as a girl. The thing is…Riley isn’t
exactly out yet. And between starting a new school and having a congressman
father running for reelection in uber-conservative Orange County, the
pressure—media and otherwise—is building up in Riley’s so-called “normal” life.
On the advice of a therapist, Riley starts an anonymous blog to vent those
pent-up feelings and tell the truth of what it’s REALLY like to be a gender
fluid teenager. But just as Riley’s starting to settle in at school—even
developing feelings for a mysterious outcast—the blog goes viral, and an
unnamed commenter discovers Riley’s real identity, threatening exposure. Riley
must make a choice: walk away from what the blog has created—a lifeline, new
friends, a cause to believe in—or stand up, come out, and risk everything.
Why I Chose It: While
there are more books featuring trans and nonbinary characters these days the
pickings are still pretty slim. I was mulling over a few choices and this one
kept coming up. I chose it primarily because it looks as though it’s attempting
to present a character that it is truly gender fluid and I haven’t seen that in
a book yet.
Expectations: I’m
nervous about this one… I’m worried that Riley’s gender identity is going to
become a gimmick that drives the story. The summary sets it up in a way that
makes me feel like the novel is going to try to keep us guessing what gender Riley
was assigned at birth, and that would make me feel icky. But based on some of
the reviews I have reason to believe that the subject matter is treated
sensitively and respectfully.
#OwnVoices?: I
don’t think so.
We Are the Ants by Shaun David Hutchinson
Goodreads Summary: There
are a few things Henry Denton knows, and a few things he doesn’t. Henry knows
that his mom is struggling to keep the family together, and coping by
chain-smoking cigarettes. He knows that his older brother is a college dropout
with a pregnant girlfriend. He knows that he is slowly losing his grandmother
to Alzheimer’s. And he knows that his boyfriend committed suicide last year.
What Henry doesn’t know is why the aliens chose to abduct him when he was
thirteen, and he doesn’t know why they continue to steal him from his bed and
take him aboard their ship. He doesn’t know why the world is going to end or
why the aliens have offered him the opportunity to avert the impending disaster
by pressing a big red button. But they have. And they’ve only given him 144
days to make up his mind. The question is whether Henry thinks the world is
worth saving. That is, until he meets Diego Vega, an artist with a secret past
who forces Henry to question his beliefs, his place in the universe, and
whether any of it really matters. But before Henry can save the world, he’s got
to figure out how to save himself, and the aliens haven’t given him a button
for that.
Why I Chose It: This
one has been floating around the periphery of my TBR list since it came out. I
was immediately drawn to its cover art and summary, but was never really in the
mood to read it. Now I have an excuse to read it so… I will.
Expectations: I
mean they’re pretty high because everyone I know or follow has given it five
stars or amazing reviews. Whenever I look at it I get Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe vibes,
which is not a bad thing at all. I’m looking forward to reading it.
#OwnVoices?: Yep
What We Left Behind by Robin Talley
Goodreads Summary: Toni
and Gretchen are the couple everyone envied in high school. They've been
together forever. They never fight. They’re deeply, hopelessly in love. When
they separate for their first year at college—Toni to Harvard and Gretchen to
NYU—they’re sure they’ll be fine. Where other long-distance relationships have
fallen apart, theirs is bound to stay rock-solid. The reality of being apart,
though, is very different than they expected. Toni, who identifies as
genderqueer, meets a group of transgender upperclassmen and immediately finds a
sense of belonging that has always been missing, but Gretchen struggles to
remember who she is outside their relationship. While Toni worries that
Gretchen won’t understand Toni’s new world, Gretchen begins to wonder where she
fits in Toni's life. As distance and Toni’s shifting gender identity begins to
wear on their relationship, the couple must decide—have they grown apart for
good, or is love enough to keep them together?
Why I Chose It: Robin
Talley. I love that she writes about queer teens almost if note entirely
exclusively. I recently read both The
Lies We Tell Ourselves (historical fiction) and As I Descended (a contemporary lesbian Macbeth) and enjoyed them. I knew I had to include her in this
project and was torn between this and Our
Own Private Universe and since the latter’s protagonist was only 15 (not
interested in characters too young to drive… and 15 rubs up too closely to
middle grade for my comfort) I went with this one which is almost verging into
New Adult territory.
Expectations: Mixed…
I love Talley and enjoy her books, but I’ve heard some really damning reviews
of this one. I’ve heard that the gender issues are not represented accurately
or even compellingly. I am willing to give this one the benefit of the doubt… a
very skeptical benefit of the doubt.
#OwnVoices?: Yes
The Great American Whatever by Tim Federle
Goodreads Summary: Quinn
Roberts is a sixteen-year-old smart aleck and Hollywood hopeful whose only
worry used to be writing convincing dialogue for the movies he made with his
sister Annabeth. Of course, that was all before—before Quinn stopped going to
school, before his mom started sleeping on the sofa…and before Annabeth was
killed in a car accident. Enter Geoff, Quinn’s best friend who insists it’s
time that Quinn came out—at least from hibernation. One haircut later, Geoff
drags Quinn to his first college party, where instead of nursing his pain, he
meets a guy—a hot one—and falls hard. What follows is an upside-down week in
which Quinn begins imagining his future as a screenplay that might actually
have a happily-ever-after ending—if, that is, he can finally step back into the
starring role of his own life story.
Why I Chose It: I
loved the cover and the whole movie making/cinephile vibe it has… I was also
looking for one more gay cismale story to kind of even out the lineup.
Expectations: I added this one last minute, so I don’t
really have many expectations. It has a respectable Goodreads rating (3.77) and
decent word of mouth. I also get a little Dawson’s
Creek vibe off of it… which I can get behind.
#OwnVoices?: Yes.
If you’d like to participate in YApril let me know what YA you’re reading this month by tagging me on Instagram @thegirlinthegarret with the hashtags #YApril #TheGirlInTheGarretBlog and I’ll feature your photos in my end of the month wrap-up!
Happy Reading!
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